It's Not An Eating Disorder
by xSeshatx
Summary: {Oneshot}. His team - his family - have started to notice something about the one and only Tony Stark: He doesn't eat. If you were to call his lack of eating an eating disorder, he'd laugh in your face because, damn, he loves food.


_It's a bit out of character. I struggle to write each character completely in character so sorry for the ooc._

 _Tony_

If you were to call his lack of eating an eating disorder, he'd laugh in your face because, damn, he loves food. He particularly loves pizza, the greasy kind. Actually, anything with grease is fine. Hot dogs are a blessing and, frankly, he'd be okay if he ate nothing but cheeseburgers his entire life. Fries are perfect to snack on without having to sit for a full meal. He also loves chips. He'll eat any kind of chip. Salt n Vinegar, BBQ, Sour Cream and Onion. Homemade fries (read: hash browns) is the greatest creation of the world, surpassing even that of Jarvis or his Iron Man suit. Ice cream was so wonderfully delicious he could cry, and anything with chocolate was fine by him. Tony Stark loves food.

For someone who loves food as much as he does, he never ate as much as he should. He never had time to eat and why doesn't anybody ever understand that? He had his company to run (with the help of Pepper - bless her), constant repairs to make for him and his team, and repairs and new inventions for SHIELD because those bastards need the best things they can get and only Tony can provide that. He's always upgrading their shit as well as his suit and his teammates' suits and weapons. It wasn't like it was a problem for him - he loved to create. He was an engineer for a reason. He was smart enough to be literally anything else, but he did what he wanted to do. He loved creating. Creating took up a lot of time, though, especially when he was creating loads of important things as well as loads of less important things, like upgrades to his phones and computers. He was always creating the latest apps to purchase or a new and improved device to sell to the public. It's probably not even worth mentioning that Tony has to make public appearances often, such as galas and whatnot, as well as business meetings that he can't get out of. Tony Stark was a busy, busy man.

He forgot often to do things that normal people wouldn't be able to even think of forgetting. Instead of showers, he'd give himself three minute wash downs with a cloth and that was working just fine for him, thanks Pep fo the reminder. His record for not sleeping was close to eleven days. The world record for staying awake without stimulation is eleven days, but an argument could be made for eighteen, depending on what source you're using. Tony Stark was not trying to make history for staying awake. He didn't stay awake to hold any records (which he definitely could if he tried). He had too much to do so he couldn't just sleep like normal people. He got enough sleep and usually knew when he was pushing himself too hard. His average sleepless time was four days, and then he'd sleep for maybe ten or so hours, and then repeat the process. Occasionally, when he knew he needed a break, he'd crash for close to a day. That was normal.

One thing that Tony never really did, though, was eat.

He once, accidentally, went nearly three weeks without food before he collapsed. Since then he's been a wee bit more careful. It was usually every two or three days he'd remember to grab something to eat, and when he did grab something it was something small he could eat over a period of time while still working, like fries or chips or other unhealthy things. It was also common for him to make it about a week before remembering to eat. This bad habit of his only got worse when he started on the Avengers initiative. Since the workload got so extra with the Avengers he just simply forgot to eat. And soon enough he wasn't just forgetting. He was so used to eating so little that his body didn't remind him he was hungry anymore. As a result, the thought of food started making him feel sick, and while he knew that was a terrible sign he ignored it because, hello, who else is going to get all this work done?

Normal people, including a Super Soldier, a god, a Hulk, and master assassins, would not be able to live the way Tony Stark was living. They'd end up in the hospital or pushing back work to fit in needs. Tony wasn't normal. He wasn't ordinary. He wasn't predictable. He had too much work to do, and so he did his work and he didn't think twice about the sort of life he was living.

 _Pepper_

Pepper knew about his bad habits, but even she didn't know the extent of his eating issues. She just assumed he was eating something even if she hadn't seen him eat. She was aware that Tony was losing a lot of weight, though, and was jumping to different conclusions. He first thought was that he was sick and trying to hide it (again). When this thought came to mind, she dropped everything she was doing (literally) and raced down to his lab. Jarvis seemed to understand she was not in a playing mood and he simply opened the door for her without her having to knock or put in her pass codes. Upon hearing the door open, Tony looked up and smiled for only a moment before he realized he must have done something to piss her off because holy shit she looked mad. And scared.

"Hey, Pep," he said, sounding casual but she knew he was being cautious. For such a careless man, he was always as careful as Tony Stark could be when it came to her being in a mood. "What seems to be the issue?"

"Tony," she said, stressing his name the way she did when he was stressing her out more than he should be, and he internally winced. He honestly didn't know what it was that he could have done to upset her. He didn't think he forgot to be anywhere, and he was sure he was nothing but nice to her. He hadn't had a drink of alcohol in...he actually couldn't remember how long. Perhaps it was when he was talking with Loki during New York that he'd rather not think about because the whole PTSD wasn't sitting with him too well.

"Pep?"

"You'd...tell me, wouldn't you? If you were sick again?"

"...Pep?"

"You'd tell me if you were dying again, right?" she asked, forcing herself to say the word without flinching which was extremely hard for her to accomplish, but she did it.

Tony nodded, setting down the hologram he was looking at and giving her his full attention which was a rarity, but he wanted her to know he was being serious. "I'm not dying, and I would tell you if I was. Where is this coming from?" Reaching out to her, he grabbed he hands and pulled himself closer (who created chairs with wheels, again? He was about to send the family a lot of thank yous). "Pep?"

She gave a little sigh and kneeled down so they were closer to eye level. "You're losing weight, and you're not looking too healthy. I'm just worried about you. I don't want another incident like last time."

He brought her hands up to his lips and held them there for a minute before speaking. "I feel fine. I don't feel like I'm dying. I didn't notice I was losing weight. I don't think it's an issue. Maybe I'll try to eat a little more, if that'll make you happy. But I most certainly am not dying."

The relief washed over Pepper and her entire body relaxed. "Okay. Okay. Good. Not dying, great," she spoke almost breathlessly, as if she had been holding her breath the entire time in anticipation. "Well, I need a break, that was a conversation that I thought would go different. I know spur of the moment ideas usually come from you, but how about we both take a break and go out to dinner? Just me and you, right now. Or after you take a shower because, no offense, you're a bit on the smelly side."

"I'd love to, Pep," and he really would. The idea of missing out on work stressed him out beyond belief, but he loved Pepper enough to know when she needed something, and she needed this. She has almost convinced herself that he was dying again. If missing a few hours of work was enough to calm her down, then he'd just have to work extra hard and sleep another day instead of that night like he was planning. But that's okay, this was his Pepper. "I'll go get cleaned up right now, take you out to the fanciest restaurant that I can find. Hell, why don't you take one of my cards and have Happy drive you to go pick yourself out a brand new dress. Oh, and some shoes. And whatever else you want while I get cleaned up. Just me and you tonight, yeah? Gotta make sure we're both dressed to impress."

The smile on Pepper's face was more than enough to wipe away any negative feelings about missing out on hours of work. That smile made it all worth it at the time. She gave him a slow, love-filled kiss before pulling away, her smile even sweeter on her face. "Will that be all, Mr. Stark?"

"That will be all, Miss Potts," he smiled back, warmth of their love spreading through him. One quick kiss later and Pepper was standing up straight and on her way out of his lab. Tony stood up, gave a quick glance at all the fucking work he has to get done, but he quickly turned away and followed after her before he even gave himself a chance to doubt his decision.

An hour later, Pepper returned to the tower already dressed in her new dress. It was on the shorter side but long enough to be modest. It was a jet black, elegant dress. One side was sleeveless while the other had a slight sleeve that wrapped around her shoulder, and the small of her back was visible. Her shoes were simple black heels with spirals along her ankles. She quickly stopped by a salon who, thank god, had someone available for a quick appointment. Keeping it simple, she had her hair curled in large, bouncy curls. She took a longer time than usual picking out a dress to pick up because she wanted to impress Tony more than usual, and she sure did.

Tony really shouldn't have been as shocked by her appearance as he was because she always looked gorgeous. Maybe it was because he hasn't seen her get dressed up in a long, long time since he rarely left his lab for days just for the two of them. Sure, he's been to fancy meetings and such with Pepper where she dressed up, but it had been quite a long time since they had a date night with just the two of them.

Tony himself was dressed in one of his many, many, MANY suits, but he was careful to choose one in the best condition he could. Meaning, one he had bought but never worn before, and he had a ton of those. It was a simple black suit with a white shirt underneath and a plain, red tie. It wasn't much, but he also took a real, proper shower, so he did more than what was probably expected. He considered taking off the bracelets to call Iron Man to him, but he couldn't force himself to remove them. Knowing his luck, he'd take them off but then get attacked. He couldn't risk it. He didn't think Pepper would have anything negative to say about it. He was right because she barely gave it second thought. He was going out with her. That was enough.

"Ready, Miss Potts?" he asked, extending his elbow for her to grab hold of. She was going to respond but could only smile adoringly at him and take his arm, following him out to the limo Happy had waiting.

It took Pepper all of five minutes from the time food appeared at their table to realize that maybe she was right about something being wrong with Tony. The last time the two of them had dinner together (she couldn't even remember when that was) he had dug in as soon as they both had their food. Now, though, he had only had a handful of bites and they were small bites at that. This was their favorite restaurant. With a unique mix of fancy, expensive food and greasy, terribly unhealthy food, they both had something to fall back on no matter what they felt like. He ordered the biggest, greasiest, scariest looking burger on the menu that was covered in bacon, cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, ketchup, mustard, and onions. She wouldn't have been able to hold it let alone take a bite of it, but he was normally able to scarf it down as if it wasn't the size of his entire head.

Hesitantly, she reached over to grab one of his hands. "Tony..."

He knew what she was gonna say, but she didn't want her to say it. He didn't regret spending time with Pepper but he knew eating was a waste of his time. Just looking at the food made him want to throw up because there were so many other things he could be doing besides eating which is why he hadn't eaten anything in four days. Instead of giving her the chance to comment on his lack of eating, he spoke up. "I'm not too hungry, Pep, not right now. I can eat it later. That doesn't need to take away from me and you, though. I'm still right here with you."

And Pepper couldn't say anything. Because out of everything he could have been doing, he was sitting there with her.

 _Thor_

Thor knew what they thought about him: They thought he was less intelligent than the rest of them. He had no doubt his intelligence lacked on certain topics, especially on Midgard. He didn't have a clue how technology worked, he barely knew anything about their history, and he regularly confused sarcasm and metaphors for the truth because he couldn't always recognize the difference. These were all things he would know if he was born and raised in Midgard, but he was catching on at a marvelous rate. He understood more about Midgardian items than his Captain, Steve Rogers. He would never be up there with Tony Stark, though. Even most mortals couldn't match up with the Man of Iron (Side note - at least he was learning to call the Man of Iron as Iron Man).

All that being said, he was particularly gifted at reading people. If he ever mentioned that to his brother he'd be laughed at and possibly tossed out of another flying sky fortress, but it was the truth. He realized the mistakes he made with his brother and he was determined not to make those mistakes again. He began watching more people, both Asgardian and Midgardian, and learning to draw conclusions. It was easiest with his friends Banner and Rogers because they weren't as, how you say, closed off as the rest of his team. He noticed the bigger signs first: Rogers heavy sighs when something inconveniences him such as Stark being late to a meeting. Banner's visible shaking and discomfort when something happens that angers most of them, like some villain trying to injure them all. Then he began noticing the little things, like the way Rogers' fingers rubs at his temples ever-so-slightly when runs on low sleep or the way Banner casually leaves the room when voices are being raised.

He was learning to read people, and that was good for him. He even had a little read on Natasha Romanov and Clint Barton. When Clint is in significant pain, he lets his entire body go lax when he was normally bolt upright and stiff. He saw how Natasha always keeps her hand on her weapon when she's particularly on edge.

He didn't know Tony Stark before, but judging other Midgardian habits, his friend Anthony wasn't behaving as normal. Days could go by without seeing his teammate. He was told this was normal for Tony, so he didn't put much thought into it when Pepper Potts told him it was okay. She seemed closest to him and she wasn't concerned on his disappearances, so he told himself not to be concerned either. At first, right after Loki caused the New York incident to happen, he saw his friend Stark come up from his lab to grab food or occasionally eat with the group. A few weeks later, after he was finished with Loki on Asgard, he returned to stay with Tony in his tower. He rarely came up to eat, and Thor made note of it.

During the next few months he also noticed the Man of Iron (Iron Man, he reminded himself) was getting smaller in his midsection. His muscles never seemed to falter, though, which suggested the shrinking was due to lack of food. He noticed this but he couldn't fathom why. Especially after a bad battle, Thor felt as if he could eat for days on end without ever feeling full, but he never once saw Stark chow down with them. It was odd and confusing. He didn't know why, but he noticed it.

He also knew that he didn't want to make the same mistakes he made with Loki. He was already one step ahead by noticing a problem, and he was going to take steps towards resolving that problem. Friend Anthony was like a brother to him, and Thor wasn't losing another brother because of his carelessness and inattentiveness. He ordered a large pizza topped with all the meat available (pepperoni, bacon, and sausage) and made his way down to the lab where he knew Tony was hiding away. He typed in his security code (it took him a few weeks to understand the concept, but then Tony felt it was safe to trust him enough not to break anything) and made his way inside where he was greeted with a nod of acknowledgement from the engineer.

"Friend Anthony, I have yet to see you since our last battle," he said, setting the pizza down carefully in Tony's field of view. "I hope you are not too busy for company."

"Course not, Big Guy. I can talk and work," Tony said, barely glancing at the pizza before returning to his work. Black Widow took a rather hard hit a week (six days, actually) before during their last battle and it reminded him how vulnerable her and Hawkeye were in battle. He was working on creating something to help protect them from rather hard hits. He started off creating an armor but once he was almost finished he remembered how Nat had once complained about the difficulties of moving smoothly in armor. He put those files in the 'save for later' folder on his drive and started working on upgrading their current suits. He was having a difficult time perfecting it, but maybe that was just his worries of making something that wouldn't be appreciated by the two.

"I apologize in advance if I am overstepping any boundaries of our friendship, friend Anthony, but I have become aware of a habit of yours that seems to be affecting your overall health."

"Most things I do fall into the 'dangerous for my health' category," Tony said, shaking his head with a smirk while still not looking up. "Except I'm Tony Stark. I'm Iron Man. Things that will put other people on the shelves for weeks don't even put me out for a night. I'm basically a God like you." Of course he was joking when he said that, and thankfully Thor was learning jokes so he didn't take offense to being compared to a mortal like him.

"You are quite humorous, my friend," he said with a hearty laugh. "I am referring to your eating habits. It seems as if your habit of eating does not exist, or at least it does not exist compared to other mortals like yourself. Even Gods from Asgard need plenty of food to replenish our health and energy. I am afraid that your health seems to be deteriorating, and because of that you look quite ill."

Tony grimaced at the mention of food because...just no. The last bite he had was over a week before when he went out to lunch with Miss Pepper Potts. The thought of food was starting to make him feel sick on top of all the worries of not getting enough done if he sat down to eat. His grimace didn't go unnoticed by the God. "I appreciate the worry, but, like I said, I'm Tony Stark. I eat enough. I'm always full of energy and ready to fight. I eat, just maybe not around you guys. You don't gotta worry, Point Break. I've been taking care of myself my entire life and I'm turning out just fine."

Just like how Thor didn't miss the grimace, he also didn't miss the casual mention that he was taking care of himself his whole life which hinted that maybe his parents weren't there to take care of Tony, but that could have also been an exaggeration. It was best not to make assumptions based on a possible play on words. He really was learning the language of Midgardians. "If it is all the same to you, my friend, I brought down a delightful dinner I was hoping you could help me eat, assuming you have yet to eat dinner?" He had phrased his sentence as more of a question, but he was almost positive it was true just like he was almost positive that his friend wasn't taking care of himself.

Tony wasn't going to make the big guy worry more, so he agreed, directing Thor to one of his many cluttered counters where there was a roll of paper towels that Pepper had brought down a long time ago when she was trying to get Tony to straighten his lab out. That never worked, obviously. Tony could keep anything clean except for his lab, which was just an organized mess. At least he knew where everything was. "I'm going to keep working while I eat, kay?"

There was little to complain about seeing as how Thor got his friend to agree to eat. No matter how much he was learning and how well he had gotten at reading others' emotions, he was still easily sidetracked. When he asked Tony what it was he was working on, he sat there eating while listening to the inventor explain that he was creating new bodysuits for the two other mortals on the team who were constantly exposed. Pizza lay on a paper towel for Tony but it went forgotten by both men. Because Tony Stark was good at evading things and he was good at changing the focus. He didn't want to take the time to eat when he couldn't eat pizza and work at the same time. So Thor listened with joy at the explanation he was given on the project, and his grin grew when he was told it was a surprise so he had to keep it a secret. Because he knew Tony was a good man with a big heart despite what people made it seem like.

If only he remembered that Tony agreed to eat.

 _Clint_

It really wasn't any of his business what Stark did or didn't do. He was a grown ass man. He could do whatever he wanted, especially in his own tower. That didn't mean Clint didn't notice an issue. He didn't worry about it, though (yes he did). So what if Tony was starting to look sick? He wasn't Tony's keeper. Tony knew what he was doing. He always did. He was a self-important genius who knew better than to let himself get sick. He could probably tell the warning signs of getting sick three days before anybody else. He was smarter than more than just health, though. Hell, the genius could shoot a bow nearly as well as he could using just physics even though he's claimed to never having training in shooting a bow before. The man was as smart as they come.

That didn't mean that Clint wouldn't suggest eating a bit more. He knew better than most what it was like to be starving. To be so fucking hungry and being unable to stop himself from withering away from starvation and unable to carry himself properly because he was bone tired, shakingly weak, and terribly sick. He knew desperately looking for food but being unable to find even a handful of crumbs. He knew hunger pains. But he couldn't understand why Stark was going through that in a tower full of food. And that definitely didn't make him worry about it (yes it did).

Movie nights were growing increasingly more common in the tower. In the months since what happened with Loki they all somehow migrated back to Stark Tower, which was now becoming known as the Avengers Tower. It didn't start with him. He was new to the group, only really knowing Natasha. Of course, the entire group were new to each other. Everybody was still getting a feel for each other. Tony obviously didn't trust Natasha (he figured out why later on and can't say he blamed him). Steve and Tony only looked at each other like they were sizing each other up. Natasha was wary of Bruce Banner. Things were uncomfortable and tense. Bruce Banner moved into the tower at Tony's request, and Rogers followed shortly after also at Tony's request. His reasoning was so that, "Cap here can get caught up on all the technology." Nobody questioned him verbally, but they all knew Tony didn't want Steve to be stuck in an apartment alone. Thor, when he returned from Asgard, made a place for himself in the tower. He wanted to stay with his lady Jane but was reminded about the Avengers - he'd be too far away if a call to assemble rang. After four calls to assemble, Natasha took Tony's offer (did he offer everybody? Because he also had an offer) just to be closer to the group because if they were going to fight together then she needed to feel comfortable with them. A few weeks later, she dragged Clint to join them. And then movie nights started.

Tony usually wasn't involved in movie nights, claiming that he was too busy. At first, Clint said that was bullshit. He was a billionaire - what could he possibly be doing? He visited him down in his lab one day, though, and realized how dumb he was because Tony Stark was extremely busy. Sometimes they were able to convince Tony to come up and join them, but he was usually doing work on his Starkpad the whole time. Somehow - SOMEHOW - that fucking man had still kept himself up to date on every movie. Clint tried to test his knowledge sometimes, throw out weird movie facts and plots and quizzing him on what movie he was talking about. There had yet to be a movie he tried to talk about that Stark hadn't known. When he asked, Clint was simply told that Tony was superb at multitasking.

At first, movie nights were every couple of weeks, but then it became maybe once a week or sometimes even twice a week. Depending on circumstances, it could even be more often than that. Stark started off going to them every time when it was every couple of weeks, but when it picked up and was every week or multiple times a week, he'd come to every few but would miss at least half of them. It was understandable, being as busy as he was, but they would all wish he tried to make more time to participate or even just visit from time to time.

After Stark missed the previous four movie nights, Clint had had enough. He went down to the lab, determined to drag the man upstairs to spend time with the group. Banging on the door, he was caught off guard when he saw Tony jump in shock. Tony wasn't jumpy like "normal" people were. He was more jumpy than Clint or Natasha but less jumpy than civilians. Seeing Tony get startled just by knocking on the glass door was worrisome. Once inside the lab, he looked over Tony for signs of injury or sickness but all he saw was a tired inventor which was what he was all hours of the day. "What can I do for you, birdbrain?" he asked, acting as if nothing previous had occurred.

"Movie night," Clint answered. "You haven't been showing up. Figured you might have how to get to your living room so I am here to guide you up there."

"Genius here. I don't forget how to get places. Especially in my own home," Tony snorted. "I got lots of work to do. Gonna have to take a rain check on this whole 'movie night' thing if that's okay with you."

"Actually, it isn't," he said, standing his ground and crossing his arms to really drive the point. "You're always working. You don't strike me as the 'workaholic' type. If you got so much work to do then you can work during the movie like you used to. If I didn't know any better I'd say you were avoiding us."

Of course Clint didn't mean it, and Tony knew that, but that didn't mean it didn't make him feel at least a little bit guilty. He didn't want his team to feel like he was avoiding them. There were only so many hours in the day. Socializing with the group wasn't on his top priority list, though he sometimes wished it was. He almost considered them friends and would have enjoyed their company more often. Heaving a sigh, Tony pushed away from the counter and faced his guest properly. "You win. I'll join tonight. Don't get used to it, though. If I do it too much you guys might end up under the impression that I actually like you."

Grinning, Clint offered a hand to Tony to help him stand up, which Tony graciously took because standing was getting a bit hard for him those days considering the fact that it had been fifteen days since he ate. He was feeling the effects of it and knew he should eat, but he hadn't really comprehended the fact that it had been that long. Sure, he knew it had been fifteen days, but it didn't really feel like it had. Once standing on his feet, Tony swayed a bit but caught himself by putting his hands behind him on the desk. "Woah there, Stark. You alright?"

"Course I am. What movie are we watching today?"

"When's the last time you slept, Stark?"

"What are you, my mother?" Tony asked, still joking but partially serious. He hated people acting like he couldn't take care of himself. "I get enough sleep. I don't need as much as most people to keep myself going."

"And what about food?" Clint pressed, already under the assumption it was lack of food that caused him to sway and not lack of sleep, but he didn't want to open his questionnaire with that. "When's the last time you ate? Actually, when's the last time you did anything besides work?"

Tony was quick to respond with, "I went out to dinner with Pepper two weeks ago." He said that with such conviction it almost shocked Clint that Tony seemed to proud to have gone out to dinner with Pepper once in two weeks and do nothing else besides work. That just sounded miserable. Even as a spy Clint was able to do a lot of fun shit in his free time. He was a regular movie goer, he when for drives for the hell of it, and he may or may not go to a shooting range just to watch all the little children learn how to fire a gun simply because it entertained him. He knew Natasha was always reading a new book or trying to learn something new when she had the chance. He thought that, being a spy, he never had time for anything. He was wrong. Being someone like Tony Stark was so much more time consuming.

Clint shook his head, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. "Let's just go watch a movie."

Upstairs, Tony positioned himself on the far end of the couch with his legs curled up on the side of him and a blanket wrapped around his shoulders. "What're we watching?" he asked the group, already pulling up some designs to look at on his Starkpad. When Natasha answered that it was Avatar he had to actively bite back a groan. He had watched that movie at least a hundred and twenty times. It was an amazing movie but not good enough to watch it a hundred and twenty-one times.

It was twenty minutes into the movie (that he wasn't paying any attention to and was instead working on an update to one of his many apps) when he smelled the unmistakable scent of popcorn which made his stomach flip. Tony looked up and saw that Clint was missing - he was probably the one popping the popcorn in the other room. The smell was very overpowering and he felt like he was going to be sick. Once Clint walked into the room carrying a bowl, that's exactly what he did. He set his Starkpad on the arm of the couch and tried to walk as casually as he could out of the room. Once out of sight, he booked it to the bathroom and fell to his knees in front of the toilet. There was nothing except for liquids in his stomach but that didn't stop his body from forcing it all up.

"Glad to see you're doing well, Stark," Clint commented, having followed him to the bathroom. He made popcorn on purpose, expecting some sort of reaction out of Tony. That confirmed to him that he wasn't eating, but it didn't say why. Was it on purpose? Was he sick? He couldn't tell, but he had a feeling it was the same reason he didn't sleep or anything.

"Can it, Barton," Tony muttered, spitting out bile from his mouth.

"What's your issue? You're not going through a phase where you're unhappy with your body, are you?" Of course he only meant that half joking. It was still a possibility.

There was a long pause while Tony gathered himself before speaking. "It's been a long few days, is all." He stood up, wiping his mouth with some toilet paper before going over to the sink and cupping water to splash on his face. "It's nothing serious."

"No offense, dude, but you just threw up over the smell of popcorn," Clint said, handing over a hand towel. "That seems kind of serious."

"Yeah? But it's not," Tony said, sorta angrily but with more frustration than anything. "I'd appreciate it if you don't mention this to anyone."

"It isn't my business to mention it to anyone. But that doesn't mean I'm not going to tell you that you need to get some help for this. Intentional or not, you're losing weight and throwing up even though you're starving. That's never good."

Tony snorted, refusing to make eye contact with Clint. "I threw up. Happens to the best of us. And I am most certainly not starving, intentional or otherwise."

As he turned to leave the bathroom, Clint grabbed his arm hesitantly. "Okay. You're not. But if something happens and you start getting sick for whatever reason, whether it's tomorrow or three years from now, get help for yourself, okay? Because, believe it or not, we are all your friends here."

Tony's eyes softened enough to show to Clint that he knew he had a problem but he still wasn't going to say anything about it. "I know, buddy. I'd be just fine."

 _Natasha and Bruce_

The fact that Tony Stark thought nobody, including her, would figure out the issue was almost insulting. She was a spy. She was able to see more than what most people saw because she was trained to do so. Watching a man wither away in front of her was not something she would miss easily. Add that to the fact she hadn't seen him eat in the longest time and, well, it was obvious he wasn't eating and that it was affecting him. She didn't need Clint to tell her that Stark threw up to confirm her beliefs (and Clint didn't even tell her - she was able to pick up the signs of it when they returned. The way Stark had curled into himself a bit more, the way he adamantly refused to look in the general direction of the popcorn, and how he was chewing on spearmint gum to cover up any smell). It was obvious Stark wasn't taking care of himself the way he should have been. She had noticed it shortly after Loki invaded earth but it was getting progressively worse. At the moment, this was the unhealthiest she had ever seen him. It had gotten so bad that she felt like she couldn't just sit by and watch anymore.

Bruce was no spy, but Tony was his best friend. There was no doubt about that. Tony saw past the giant, green, rage monster lurking just under the surface and instead saw the scientist who was Bruce Banner. He saw a genius instead of the Hulk. He didn't approach him with fear and instead accepted Bruce for who he was, and everything that came with him. Tony didn't fear the Hulk and actually showed Tony how to put his trust into the monster instead of hatred. At the end of the day, Hulk helped save New York. And Hulk did save Tony. So Bruce learned to accept Hulk because, as mentioned already, he saved his best friend. Being Tony's best friend he was able to get a different read on the man than others. He watched as Tony got worse and worse each day. He was always exhausted, he rarely ate, and sometimes he needed help doing some of the most mundane physical tasks like carrying ten pounds worth of equipment from one counter to another. After Tony got sick just smelling popcorn, he knew it was time to speak up and stop him from inadvertently killing himself.

The morning after their movie night, Natasha went straight down to his lab with a cup of Tony's favorite coffee and a dozen donuts that they were going to eat together. When she walked into the lab, though, she saw Tony and Bruce sitting there. In Bruce's hands was a cup of coffee and sitting next to them was a box of donuts. If she wasn't Natasha Romanov she would have laughed at the coincidence, but she didn't. She set her box on top of the other box and sat on the table next to them. "I see we had the same idea," Bruce said, acknowledging Natasha with a head nod which she returned.

"I see we did," she responded.

"You guys act like I'm trying to starve myself," Tony said awkwardly, weakly, accepting the cup of coffee out of Bruce's hands.

"Are you?" Natasha questioned.

"No," Tony said, giving a small laugh and shaking his head a little. Just a little, though, because his head was pounding quite painfully and it wasn't worth moving it. "I fight aliens. Last thing I'd want to do is lose any of my muscles, and you can't starve yourself and keep up the strength to work out and keep your muscles, and if I was starving myself then I'd have to create a new suit I could fit in. I'm a grown man. I'm not self conscious."

Still, neither Natasha or Bruce looked convinced. Natasha grew up with things such as food being withheld from her. A lot of her missions put her in situations where food was hard to come by, and sometimes days would go by before she could get another meal. It was the life of a spy. Bruce, on the other hand, was often in third world countries where more than one meal a day was a luxury. Sometimes even one meal a day was a luxury. He knew what it was like to be hungry, to starve. He couldn't imagine going through that willingly.

Bruce took a slow, calming breath before speaking again. "If you aren't starving yourself, then are you sick? Is that why you can't eat?"

"Who said I can't?" Tony countered.

"Eat something then. Prove us wrong. I know you love to do that," Natasha said, sliding the box closer to him. Asking him to eat was too much and wasn't likely to get a result out of anyone, let alone Tony Stark. But everybody knew how much Tony enjoyed proving people wrong. He liked asserting that dominance over them, as if he still had something to prove to everybody.

"This is just ridiculous. You guys see that, right? I eat when I'm hungry, and I most definitely don't eat in the morning. I mean, come on, who eats breakfast? Eating in the morning only makes me sick."

"That would be a valid argument, Stark, if you slept last night, which I know you didn't because if you had went to bed last night you would still be asleep right now," Natasha said, raising an eyebrow at him as if she was challenging him to argue.

She had to give props to Tony, though, for how quickly he bounced back as he waved a hand, shutting down her side of the argument. "It's still the same. Conditioning, you know? Skinner. Bruce, you know what I'm talking about. It's psychology."

Bruce looked amused by his statement. "I guess it makes sense. Seems like more of an excuse, but it does make sense." Bruce knew plenty about what Tony was talking about. He was actually using conditioning to get a better grip on the Hulk in order to get him to switch over after a battle. He had asked Natasha to ring a bell before giving the Hulk something like sweets or a toy (like a makeshift Captain America shield or Nerf gun - something children would like because Hulk was really just one giant child). It didn't take long before Hulk started hearing the bell and feeling happy which made it easier for Bruce to switch back over. Figures Tony would bring that up and look at Bruce. That meant Tony knew exactly what Bruce was up to and was looking for a way out of the conversation.

This time Natasha did smirk at how ignorant Tony thought she was. "I know what conditioning is, and I know who Skinner is, and I know that we are conditioning Hulk. Are you done trying to avoid the subject?" She knew what conditioning was first-hand from the red room. She wasn't ignorant.

"I wasn't trying to avoid the subject," Tony said before taking a long sip of coffee that was definitely needed. He was exhausted, and Natasha was right: he hadn't slept the night before. He couldn't remember the last time he did sleep. He would have to sleep that night before he starts wasting time by working on stuff while half-awake. That never worked out too well since he stopped understanding completely or would doze off while working with dangerous equipment. He almost burned his face off once. He'd rather not risk repeating that incident that almost happened. "I was simply stating what it is."

Tiredly, Bruce sighed. "Look, Tony...Whatever is going on, you can talk to us. Or anybody. Or you could at least let us support you as you work through it yourself if you'd rather not talk about it," he said. "I don't know why you're not eating, but it isn't healthy. It's been getting worse for months but I've never seen you this bad before."

"Why are you acting like I don't eat?" Tony asked. "I don't see you guys eat. Should I be questioning you? No. Because I trust you guys to take care of yourselves. We're all adults here. The only child in this tower is Hawkeye. I can take care of myself just like you guys can take care of yourselves. I'm touched you're all worried, really, I am, but I'm Tony Stark which means I'm fine."

Natasha had enough of the games Tony kept trying to play. She opened one of the boxes of donuts, grabbed one covered in chocolate and sprinkles, and thrust it in his face. "Take a bite. Prove us wrong." The reaction was immediate. His breath hitched, his body tensed, and he looked down at his coffee instead of at the food directly in front of him. He was trying to avoid throwing up. She took pity and put the donut back away to save him the embarrassment. "I think that proves our point. Tony, let us help you."

She called him Tony instead of Stark. Maybe that's why he looked up at her like he was really contemplating talking. His eyes burned into hers but she didn't blink or look away. She'd wait for him to find the courage to speak. After twenty or so seconds, the vulnerable look in his eyes was replaced by the usual cockiness. "I don't need help with anything," he said, once again waving his hand. "I have too much work to worry about starving myself. Starving myself would only cause problems in the long-term which would screw me up with time. You guys don't need to worry about anything."

And that was it, really. Bruce and Natasha knew something was going on but they couldn't force Tony to speak about it if he didn't want to. They didn't know why the issue was happening but they knew he wasn't eating and it was making things harder on the engineer. They left the donuts behind as they left the lab, though, just in the hopes that some would be missing by the time one of them went down later (spoiler alert - all the donuts were there when Bruce went down to work with him).

 _Steve_

There was a call to assemble in the dead of night. It took Steve a matter of seconds to strip out of his sweatpants and pull on his uniform, all the while shaking the lasting effects of sleep away which the flashing lights helped with. Sixty seconds after the alarm first sounded, he was already out of his room and on his way to the group's meet up spot for when there was a call to assemble. The elevator would take too long so he took the stairs three at a time and made it to the avengers room in record time. Twenty seconds after he arrived, Clint and Natasha came running in together, dressed and ready to go. Banner came walking calmly into the room dressed in his Hulk-approved pants (that Tony made so when Banner would change back he'd still be clothed). Thor followed directly behind Banner in a similar, calm fashion since he was more used to battle than any of the rest of them.

The group agreed upon four minutes to meet up. The alarm would shut off after two minutes but would sound every twenty seconds until the four minutes were up where the flashing lights would also stop because all of them were supposed to be there. Whoever wasn't there when the lights turned off would basically be shamed (but that's never happened). The lights turned off but there were only five people standing around. Tony Stark was not to be found.

"Jarvis, patch us over to Stark," Steve barked, fully into Captain mode. Captain America was strict, commanding, and battle-oriented. Steve was different. Steve was understanding, compassionate, and caring. He couldn't be both at all times. Captain America wasn't in the mood for Stark's antics. If he was in Steve mode he would be worried and wondering why the man was late when he was almost always there within the first two minutes.

"As you wish, Captain," Jarvis answered, fully understanding the fact that Steve was now Captain and not longer 'Mr. Rogers'.

As soon as Captain America heard background noise in the coms, he started in on Tony. "Stark, where are you? You know the rules. You're supposed to already be here. There's been a call to assemble. Let's go, Iron Man."

"I'm, ah, sorry Cap," Tony said, sounding out of breath in a way that worried everybody but Captain Rogers. It would have worried him if he was Steve at the moment, but he had no time for that. "I'm on my way. Patch Fury over through the speakers for debriefing. I'll be there before the quinjet arrives."

"What is your status, Iron Man? Do you take the Avengers seriously or not? This is not something to take lightly."

Bruce cleared his throat, jumping in before Tony starts arguing back. "Captain, with all due respect, I think Tony takes the Avengers just as seriously as any of us. Cut him some slack until you have reason to believe he's no longer taking this seriously."

"I believe him being late is reason enough."

"He could have been in the middle of fixing his suit," Bruce tried to reason. "Or there could have been an accident in the lab. Or maybe it's something simple like he dropped his bracelets that call Iron Man to him. We don't know he was slacking."

Captain America couldn't find any true reason to accuse Stark of slacking so he just remained silent as he connected Fury to the tower (Stark made it simple. All he had to do was call Fury through the coms and turn on something Stark described as "high-tech bluetooth" that would patch Fury over so everybody could hear. Tony explained it to Bruce in technological terms but had dumbed it down for the rest of them). "Quinjet ETA less than 90 seconds," Fury said as a way of a greeting.

"Fury, what do we got?" Captain asked as everybody (minus Tony) piled into the elevator to take them up to the top.

"In simple terms, we got makeshift Iron Men. They started out attacking civilians but it doesn't seem like they are aiming to kill. If they are, they are doing a pretty piss-poor job at doing so. It seems as if they were ordered to subdue rather than execute."

"Are there any known soft spots in their armor?" Tony asked, speaking over the coms.

"Not yet. Nobody has ventured that close to any of them to figure that out."

Tony was waiting for them, fully suited, on the roof by the time the elevator got there. While waiting for the quinjet, Captain America leveled Tony with a look. "Why were you late?" he asked.

"I didn't hear the alarm go off," Tony said, leaving his facemask down. He really didn't hear the alarm go off. He had been getting ready to finally get some sleep when his head became very heavy and it felt like all the blood in his body rushed to his ears because all he heard was his own heart beating. He had been standing but somehow ended up on the floor. After a few moments, everything passed and went back to normal. When he opened his eyes he saw the lights flashing which meant he had missed the alarm. That's about the time he got a call from Rogers.

"What do you mean you didn't hear the alarm? How on earth did you miss it?" Cap wasn't buying it. The alarms were louder than anything he's even heard. There was no way to miss it. It was even able to be heard over Tony's loud, obnoxious noises he calls music.

Tony rolled his eyes inside his suit but, of course, Steve couldn't see it. That was probably a good thing. "I don't know. I just missed it. I get caught up in my work. I still heard it before it was too late, so just let it go."

"I see the quinjet," Natasha announced, saying it mainly to quit the argument from continuing. She knew whatever was the reason for Tony being late, it had to do with his lack of sleep or food, but she also knew that Tony wouldn't speak up about that.

Steve leveled Tony with one less look before jogging over to join the rest of the group. Tony usually flew to the danger and this wasn't going to be any different no matter how much he wanted to just sit down. "Sir, may I suggest that you ride in the quinjet?" Jarvis said, startling him for a brief moment. His AI sometimes knew him too well.

"No way, J. I got this."

"Whatever you say, sir."

Jarvis flew the Iron Man suit and Tony didn't say anything. If he acknowledged it then that would admit that he needed Jarvis to take control and that would then admit that he had an issue, which he did not (yes he did). Jarvis could do most of the autopiloting unassisted, and he'd even be able to do the battle alone, too, but there was were too many possible negative outcomes that Tony couldn't risk. There was something about a human doing the fighting that an AI just couldn't do. That's why when they got to battle, Tony took control back of the suit and jumped right into fighting even though the rest of his team had not arrived just yet. The makeshift Iron Men didn't seem too dangerous but there were enough of them to be considered a serious problem, and the numbers were overpowering the civilians.

When the quinjet arrived, Captain felt frustrated. Iron Man knew not to engage in battle until the rest of the team arrived for backup. It wasn't safe to fight alone. "Iron Man!" Captain shouted into his com, not saying anything else but not needing to. Tony knew why he was pissed.

"Yell at me later, Cap," Tony said, sounding careless and not at all like he was struggling to even breathe. "Civilians weren't handling these bots as well as I am."

In the end, it took the group of them two hours to destroy all the bots, or 'Insignificant, inconveniencing idiots.' There were little civilian injuries, and only a couple injuries in the avengers. Clint took a nasty fall and possibly sprained his ankle, but that was easy to deal with. Tony wasn't fairing too well. His entire body was exhausted and he was keeping himself conscious just out of pure will and his stubborn ways. Debriefing was hard to sit through, but it didn't take long at all, thank god. Soon, they were all flying back to the tower. Jarvis flew Tony.

Steve, no longer in Captain mode, went down to the lab to see Tony once they arrived. He was surprised and concerned to see the door to the lab open when he went down. He stepped inside, about to call out Tony's name, when he saw the man on the unconscious on the floor. "Stark!" he shouted out, running to kneel beside him. He checked for a pulse only to find a slow but steady one. He shook the man's shoulder almost frantically and was relieved when he heard him groan and saw his eyes open. "Tony! What happened? Were you injured?"

Tony looked embarrassed at his fainting. "Nope, not injured, Cap. Dunno what happened. Let me up."

But Steve didn't let go. He got a closer look at his friend and couldn't help but notice how unhealthy he looked. He looked as if he hadn't slept in months and he couldn't ignore how smaller the man looked and felt. "Have you been taking care of yourself, Stark?"

That was it for Tony. He snapped. "Why do you all think I'm incapable of taking care of myself? I have been doing so all my life. I don't need any of you people to come into my tower and tell me how bad I am at caring for myself." While he was ranting, he pushed Steve away and got to his feet, leaning heavily on the counter. "I know what I'm doing. I am far too busy to listen to anymore of your concerns. You guys all think I'm so irresponsible, but I am here running a company. Do you understand that, Cap? I am running my own company. I am running my company, I am a full-time avenger, I am constantly making upgrades to my shit as well as your shit and everybody elses shit. I make new things everyday. I am responsible. I can take care of myself without the concern from all of you."

Steve studied the man for a long while after he finished his rant. He saw the way Tony's shoulders were slouched and how he had curled himself in as if he was in pain. He saw the way his legs and arms shook from supporting him. The bags under his eyes were very prominent, the lack of fat on him, the lack of color. "...So that's the reason," he said quietly, softly. "You think you're too busy to eat or sleep. You think you're wasting your time taking care of yourself instead of taking care of your responsibilities."

He didn't leave Tony anytime to argue before turning around and leaving the lab, distraught at the way Tony was falling apart in front of everybody.

 _Tony_

It wasn't an eating disorder. There was no way it could have been. He loved food. He loved eating. He just didn't have time to eat. Some people miss meals because they're too busy. He just did a little bit more often than others. That was okay, though, because he still got himself through the day.

"They think I can't take care of myself, J. I'll show them. Order a pizza, J. The usual. Have it delivered ASAP."

Fifteen minutes later, a hot, fresh pizza was delivered to his lab and Tony did not hesitate in opening it and grabbing a piece, though he did avoid looking at it, but that was just coincidence (no it wasn't). He took a bite and not five seconds later he was spitting it out and reaching for the trash can he casually placed beside him only moments before. He threw up the liquids in his system and then continued to sit there as he dry heaved. That was the turning point for him when he realized he might just have an issue.

Eating disorder sounded too harsh but there was nothing else to label it as. It was an eating disorder, no matter how unintentional. He took a few minutes to compose himself and force himself to get used to the idea of an eating disorder before he spoke up. "J, get someone down here. I...I don't care who. Don't call Pepper, though. She's too far away. Don't wanna worry her for no reason, right, J?"

"Certainly, sir."

The rest of the Avengers were sitting down in the living room talking about, obviously, Tony. Steve was sharing what he just witnessed and then the rest of them all spoke up about what they've noticed and what they have seen.

"He was...He passed out. He was just...out. I think it was exhaustion. Dehydration, maybe, and starvation. He thinks he's too busy for all of that."

"The smell of popcorn made him throw up."

"I brought friend Anthony food, but I do not believe he ate it. I did not realize until just now that he has not."

"We brought him coffee and donuts."

"Stark only drank the coffee."

"If I may interrupt, sir is requesting someone to visit him in his lab," Jarvis said.

"Who?" Steve asked, ready to jump to his feet if it was him. He would race down there if he had to. If Tony was going to pass out again he would be there.

"He did not specify. He has simply requested for any of you to come down."

"Let us all go see friend Anthony," Thor declared, and nobody argued.

When they got down to the lab, they were welcomed with an open door. The saw Tony sitting there, looking worse than they had ever seen him look before. It was more than just being exhausted and hungry, and it was more than the anger Steve saw. He looked downright depressed and worried. "Tony?" Steve questioned. "What is it?"

"You guys have all made it clear you have some...concerns. I didn't realize how bad it was getting, but it's getting bad." He was quiet for a long time but nobody said anything. They were waiting for him to get whatever he had to say out. They must have been waiting for close to ten minutes. "...I can't eat."

Bruce immediately went into doctor mode and tried to come up with a possible reason for somebody not being able to eat. "Do you have any other symp-"

"-It isn't anything like that," Tony interrupted, his voice shaking. "Steve had it right. I'm too busy. I usually go a while in between sleeping or eating or something. There's so much work to do, and I'm always behind. It's been a...very long time since I've been able to eat like normal. Months. It's gotten worse the past couple of weeks."

"How long has it been since you've eaten, Tony?" Natasha asked, trying to keep her voice soft and unaccusing.

"I don't know. Three weeks, maybe? The thought of food...the smell, the sight...it makes me sick. It's been like that for a few months now. But I can't even eat it now. I tried but I threw it back up. It's making it difficult for me to be an avenger. I don't think it would be...responsible for me to keep being an avenger in my condition."

Steve was shocked, to say the least. Tony was arrogant. He knew how to push the limits of everybody, including himself. If he was admitting that this was too much for him and that he needed to take a step back then this was something they should all be nearly panicking over. "You're quitting?" he asked dumbly. He didn't mean it like that. He wasn't intentionally trying to make it sound like Tony was intentionally stepping away, but he was in such shock that he couldn't form a better sentence.

Natasha had his back, though. "What Steve means to ask is, you are going to take a step back?"

A sigh was all they needed as an answer but he kept going. "This battle was too hard for me. I'm not reliable. I was slow to respond, and you-" he nodded at Clint "-got injured because I was too slow to catch you. I would have been able to get to you fast enough if I was at my best. I'm sorry. Missing the alarm earlier just adds onto the list of reasons why I shouldn't be able to fight. It was like I fainted earlier, only for a few minutes, but it was long enough to make me late. I'm sorry for that, too."

Bruce was the first one to step forward and kneel in front of his friend. "I'm a doctor, you know. I can help. I've dealt with plenty of starving people in my time. I know how to coax food back into you. And pizza isn't the best choice to start with, by the way."

Clint was next. "I rely on you too much. That's at least 80% my fault. I'll let you keep some of the blame to make you feel better...And I may not have helped starving people, but I have been one of those people at a few points. Maybe I can be a little help, too."

Natasha allowed a bit of her softer side to slip out. "I've been here to help you whenever you needed it. Now that you're admitting you need it I personally promise you that this issue of yours will be resolved."

"I may not know these bouts of starvation," Thor said as soon as Natasha was finished, "but I have seen warriors who need some assistance from our brethren. There is no shame in requiring help from those who care for you. I would be honored if you allow me to support you in your quest for health."

Steve watched, speechless, for a long moment before adding his contribution. "I'm captain of our team, but more than that, you're my friend. We failed you in letting you get this bad, but we'll make it up to you by helping you get better. Allowing us to help is the first step, and I'm sure I'm speaking for us all when I say that we are proud of you. We're ready to help."

Tony looked at each one of them, staring into their eyes before moving on to the next person, before smiling to himself. "Have I ever told you guys that you rock? Like truly, seriously rock? Because you do...And thanks, guys. Thanks a lot."

When Pepper came home a week later she could feel the difference in the tower. She felt it while walking through the kitchen where Bruce, Steve, and Natasha were standing, working on what was probably dinner, talking and laughing together. She considered questioning the different atmosphere but decided against it. Instead, she was on her way to the lab, because she has missed Tony and could tell that something was up. She was worried, but after feeling the happier atmosphere she began to relax a little bit. Maybe he was actually learning to spend more time with his team.

Sitting with Tony in the lab was Clint and Thor, and even though Tony was working endlessly, he was looking up to respond to whatever the two others were saying. That was something she struggled with sometimes since she could be talking for an hour and he barely even realized she was there. When Clint saw Pepper coming, he elbowed Thor, said something, and they were on their way so it was just Pepper and Tony. She'd thank them for the alone time later.

"Tony," she said softly, admiring her boyfriend. There was definitely something different about him. A good different. She'd be lying if she wasn't a little saddened by the fact, though, knowing that she missed out on a lot and he hadn't said a word about it.

Tony, on his part, set down what he was working on and crossed the room to envelop her in a hug, and if that didn't take any negative feelings away from Pepper than nothing would. "Hey, Pep," he said, making sure to give her a squeeze before letting go. "I missed you."

"You never say that," she acknowledged. "I've missed you, too. What's going on?" She looked around the lab and bunched her eyebrows together in confusion. There was a large, digital clock that was projected onto the wall that was counting down. There was 47 minutes remaining but it was still going down. There was a new fridge next to the wall the clock was projected. The lab was less messy. There were different boxes laying around with different labels. 'Tools - Fire' 'Tools' 'Iron Man' 'Weapons' and 'Quinjet' were just a few of the boxes as well as boxes with the names of the other Avengers. The music was quiet in the back and it was more soft than the loud stuff he normally listened to. It actually felt like a normal lab instead of a lab belonging to Tony Stark. "What happened since I've been gone?"

Tony wiped his dirty (sweaty) hands off on his jeans uncomfortably, keeping his eyes anywhere but Pepper. "There were some issues a week or so ago, but I'm working through it with the help of everybody. I didn't want to tell you before you came back so you didn't rush back here. It wasn't anything that serious, but I know you'd be worried. But it's under control. It's all under control."

Pepper took a step closer to Tony who had unconsciously taken a step back during his little rant. "What were the issues? You're not dying again, are you?"

"No, no," Tony was quick to say. "I told you that before, and I wasn't lying. No dying over here. It's just, well...you know. I wasn't eating like I should have been. I got sick. I went three or so weeks without food. I couldn't even look at food without getting sick. It got kinda bad for a little bit there, but you guys all made your concerns clear to me. I didn't think there was an issue until there was a call to assemble and I was barely able to hold my own. I passed out after the battle. I missed the initial call. I'm taking a break from being Iron Man. I was getting to the point of no return. Everybody has been a big help. Keeping me on a schedule, forcing me away. Bruce and Clint know exactly what I should eat to get me back into the habit of eating, and Natasha has permission to physically drag me out to eat."

Pepper's heart broken at the thought of him being so helpless and desperate for help while she was gone. She took another step forward and wrapped her arms around his neck. "I'm sorry I wasn't here."

"No, Pep, it's okay. I could have called you back. I know you would have came if I asked you to," Tony said, accepting the second hug. "I'm getting better. Most foods still make me sick, but after a week I can hold down soup, and let me tell you how good of a cook Nat is. She doesn't seem like the cooking type but she is a better cook than Jarvis was." He didn't have to explain that he was referring to his butler from when he was young and not the AI. "Jarvis was a great cook, but Nat? If her soup tastes this good, I can't wait to be able to eat more. And Bruce told Clint how to make this most amazing smoothie. I could drink it all day. I can't even tell if it's berries or bananas or oranges or what, but it's tasty. You should try some."

And Pepper laughed, because Tony was starting to sound more like Tony, and she hadn't heard him sound like that in so long.

Three weeks later there was a call to assemble, the seventh in the three weeks. It was a bumpy road. It was one of the hardest times in Tony's life. It was like he was getting help for a drug addiction instead of an unintentional eating disorder. He had his breakdowns, knowing that eating meant not working, and he needed to work. But his team and Pepper watched his back, kept him going, gave him the strength he needed to take a step back from work and take care of himself. He was sleeping at least once every two days, showering once every two to three days, and eating two times a day. He was getting close to how normal people took care of themselves. He was ready to get back to fighting.

Nobody questioned him when they saw Iron Man appear in the meeting room. Pepper pretended not to notice his sudden disappearance, and acted like she wasn't proud or surprised when she saw footage of him flying through the skies. His team didn't even look twice. And for that, Tony was grateful. There was only one comment made.

"Iron Man, watch yourself out there," Captain said. Even Steve Rogers as Captain America was looking out for Tony. And if that didn't make Tony's heart fill up, he didn't know what will. His team cared for him.

"Don't I always, Cap?"


End file.
